Summertime
by dementedappletree
Summary: Blaine invites Kurt to come to the beach with his family during the summer. The two are in love, but his father doesn't accept them.
1. At the Beach

"Blaine!" his mother called from the living room. "We have something to discuss with you."

He sighed and joined his parents in the other room. "What is it?"

"We're going to the beach this summer!"

An expression of dismay crossed his face. "Why?"

"I'd thought you'd be happy," his mother said. "You're always complaining about being stuck in Ohio for the summer."

Normally, he would have been. But now he had Kurt, and he had been looking forward to spending more time with him now that school was out.

"How long are we going for? And where?" He hoped that they were at least going to Santa Monica or something.

"Two weeks. To the Outer Banks."

"Where the hell are they?"

"Blaine! Language," his father reprimanded.

"They're on the coast of North Carolina. It's very pretty there."

"Whatever. I'm not going."

"You are going, and that is final," his father told him. "We've already made the arrangements."

"You can bring a friend," his mother offered.

Blaine brightened. "I'll call Kurt!"

"I don't believe I've met this Kurt," his father said. Blaine hadn't told his parents that he had a boyfriend yet. His father wasn't exactly accepting of his sexuality.

"He was in the Warblers. I've told you about him, remember?"

"Ah yes. The one who transferred."

"So can I invite him?"

"I suppose," his father allowed.

Blaine raced up to his room with the phone. He dialed Kurt's number, knowing it by heart. The phone rang for ages. "Please be home," he whispered, just as a voice came on the other end.

"Hello?" Kurt said.

"Kurt!"

"Hi, Blaine." From his voice, Blaine could tell that he was smiling. "What's up?"

"I'm going to the beach for two weeks."

"Oh. When?" Kurt seemed to be trying to hide his disappointment.

"Next week."

"Have fun," Kurt said sadly.

"Kurt, it's okay! My parents said you could come with us."

"Really? That's great!" he exclaimed. "I'll have to ask my dad and Carole though."

"That's fine."

"Just a minute, then." Blaine heard the muffled voices of Kurt and his dad.

"He wants to talk to your parents."

Blaine went downstairs and handed the phone to his mom. "Kurt's dad wants to talk to you."

He sat on the couch while he waited nervously to hear if Kurt was allowed to come.

His mom passed the phone back to him. "His father says your friend can go to the beach with us."

Blaine ran back up to his room and bounced on the bed. "You can come!" he said into the phone.

"I know! I can't wait."

The week until the beach passed glacially, but finally Blaine and his parents drove by Kurt's house to pick him up. "How many suitcases do you _have_?"

"Just three," Kurt replied.

Blaine shook his head and helped him lift them into the car. Kurt said his goodbyes to his dad and Carole.

"You have fun, kid," his dad told him, sounding a little upset.

"I'll be fine, Dad." He hugged Burt and Carole, and Finn patted him on the back awkwardly.

"Bye!"

He got into the car while they waved goodbye. He and Blaine sat in the back seat, and he wasn't sure how close to sit. Did Blaine's parents know about them? he wondered. He didn't know if Blaine had told them yet.

Blaine smiled at him, but didn't reach out to hold his hand like he normally did. Guess not, he thought.

The trip to the airport seemed to take forever. Why hasn't he told them? Is he ashamed of me? No, he said he loved me. So why wouldn't he tell them? He was pretty sure Blaine's parents knew that Blaine was gay.

Kurt and Blaine's seats on the plane were near the back, and Blaine's parents' were at the front in First Class. "I guess they didn't want to waste expensive tickets on us," Blaine said.

"I don't mind," Kurt answered truthfully. He was just as happy not to have to be around Blaine's parents.

The plane took off soon after they were seated.

"Hey, Blaine?"

"Yeah?"

"Why haven't you told your parents about us?" He couldn't quite keep the hurt out of his voice.

"They don't exactly… well, they know I'm gay. But my dad isn't happy about it. I didn't want them to treat you differently," he explained.

"That makes sense, I guess," Kurt said. He was going to have to be careful around Blaine's parents.

The flight was a fairly short one, but Kurt wished it was longer. He wasn't going to enjoy having to pretend to be straight.

The two of the chatted easily and listened to music until the plane touched down.

Blaine's parents had rented a house that was as close as possible to the beach. It was two storeys, with four bedrooms and a loft.

"This place is awesome!" Kurt shouted.

"Yeah, I guess they sort of went all out."

The two of them chose bedrooms on the second floor, while Blaine's parents took the master bedroom downstairs.

"Hey, there's a plus to them not knowing about us," Blaine said mischievously.

"What's that?"

"They won't suspect us of making out when the door is closed."

Kurt smiled, thinking that maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

After they'd put their luggage in their rooms, Blaine asked if they could go for a walk on the beach.

"Sure," his mom said. "But be back in time for dinner at nine."

They walked out to the beach on the boardwalk that protected the dunes. Once they reached the sand, Blaine grabbed Kurt's hand.

"We'll try to be out of the house as much as possible, ok?"

The beach was mostly empty with the sun going down, so Kurt pulled Blaine in and kissed him. "I wish we could do this all the time."

"We will," Blaine assured him.

They walked down the beach hand in hand, ignoring the glances they got from some of the people they passed.

"It really is beautiful, isn't it?" Blaine said, watching the setting sun.

"It is," Kurt agreed. "But I _hate _mosquitoes," he growled, slapping at one on his arm. "They'll ruin my skin!"

Blaine laughed. "It'll be fine. I'll get you some good bug repellent."

They headed back to the house for dinner, wishing they could stay out all night.

Kurt braced himself for the awkwardness that was sure to follow. Blaine's parents didn't know him, and they were sure to ask a ton of questions.

Sure enough, Blaine's mom started talking as soon as he and Blaine sat down.

"What school do you go to, Kurt? I'm sure Blaine's told us, but I can't seem to remember."

"Well, I was at Dalton for a while, but I'm back at McKinley now."

"Why did you transfer?" Mr Anderson asked.

"My parents wanted me to get a better education, so they sent me to Dalton, but they couldn't pay for the tuition, so I went back to my old school," Kurt lied. He didn't want to go into all the troubles he'd had with Karofsky.

"I see. And you were in the Warblers?"

"I was, but now I'm into the New Directions again."

Blaine snorted with laughter.

"What is it Blaine?" Kurt hissed.

"Nothing. Sorry."

Kurt was glad the Andersons didn't seem to get the joke. They looked confused for a moment, then resumed their interrogation of him.

When dinner was over, they went up to the huge loft that took up the space where there would normally be an attic. It was furnished nicely, with a couch, a coffee table covered in magazines, and a flat screen television.

"That was _not _funny, Blaine!"

"It was hilarious!"  
>Kurt glared at him.<p>

"I know, I know. I'll keep the inappropriate laughter to a minimum."

"Thank you."

There were windows at either end of the loft, and one side looked out on the ocean.

"That's a great view," Kurt said.

The stars were beginning to come out, and the reflection of the moon glittered on the surface of the ocean.

"I know a better one, though."

Blaine was gazing at him adoringly. Kurt blushed a little. It was still so unfamiliar, to be wanted like that.

Blaine touched his cheek, then kissed him, hard. Kurt leaned into him, and started when Blaine's tongue slipped into his mouth. They were just getting into it when they heard footsteps on the stairs. They broke apart.

Mrs Anderson entered to find them on opposite sides of the couch, each looking through a magazine. "There's a movie on, if you boys want to watch it."

"What movie?" Blaine asked, trying to sound interested.

"I think it's the new Pirates of the Carribean."

"Do you want to, Kurt?"

"No thanks. I've seen it."

"All right. Is there anything you boys want? Magazines aren't very interesting. I could bring up some video games," she offered.

Act normal, Kurt thought. "Sure, that'd be great."

She came back up with a selection of games.

"Thank you, Mrs Anderson."

"Call me Ella."

"Okay."

She went back downstairs, and the two boys relaxed.

"You actually want to play video games?" Blaine asked him.

"No, but I wanted it to seem like we were doing something besides… you know."

"Smart. We might as well set it up, so it'll look authentic."

They put in one of the games, then settled back onto the couch.

They started kissing again, hands on each other's backs. Kurt's hand slid down to Blaine's leg. The sensation was thrilling, and Kurt was hyper-aware of every part of his body. His hands, one on Blaine's leg, one on his back. Their chests, pressed together. Blaine's hands, twining in his hair. And most of all, their lips moving together.

Blaine bit at his bottom lip, making Kurt gasp. "Blaine…"

"Sorry."

"No… keep going."

Kurt felt Blaine, hard against him. "Oh…"

Then there were the sounds of someone coming up the stairs. They started the game, making sure that their laps were hidden by the coffee table.

"I'd like you to join us downstairs."

"Dad… can't we finish the game?"

"You can finish this level. Then come down."

"Fine," Blaine sighed.

"That was close," Kurt said, once Mr Anderson was out of earshot.

"Yeah. I guess we'll have to be more careful."

They waited a few minutes, then went to the living room and watched the rest of the movie with Blaine's parents.

When the movie finished, they went up to their rooms, wishing they could share one.

"Goodnight."

"Night, Blaine."


	2. Swimming

Author's Note: I'm about to introduce some OC's, so hopefully you like them or at least don't hate them too much. If you don't know what grits are, I recommend you try them. And I realize that shallowness is not the reason that the Atlantic Ocean is warmer than the Pacific, but I'm not sure if Blaine would know that and it's not really important to the story.

The next day dawned bright and sunny. Blaine's mom cooked them a breakfast of what looked like vaguely yellow sludge.

"Um… what is this?" Kurt asked, watching it slide off his fork.

"Grits! Try it," she said.

Kurt put it in his mouth and swallowed. "It's good," he said, surprised. The grits were hot and had a similar texture to porridge, but they tasted like cheese.

"Thank you," she said, smiling.

Blaine, who had been watching Kurt doubtfully, tried a mouthful. "You're right. It is good."

"Where did you learn to cook this?"

"It's one of those charming Southern dishes they have here. Someone gave me the recipe, so I decided to try it."

Blaine's mom actually seemed pretty nice. Kurt smiled at her, but the smile slid off his face at Blaine's next words.

"So, we're going swimming after breakfast, right?"

"Swimming?"

"Yes. That is what you do at the beach, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Okay. We'll go swimming."

Kurt finished his bowl of grits. Up in his room, he slid on his swimming trunks and slathered on ridiculous amounts of sunscreen, cursing his fair skin. He looked at himself in the mirror, hoping Blaine wouldn't be too disappointed.

Blaine met Kurt at the back door of the house. "Are you coming, Mom?"

"No, I'm fine. You two go on ahead."

"See you later."

Blaine tried not to stare at Kurt's bare chest, but he was just so beautiful. His skin was light and flawless, except for a few freckles on his shoulders.

Kurt looked away, embarrassed. "Sorry I'm so…" he gestured to his stomach.

"What are you talking about?" Blaine asked. "You look amazing."

"Thanks."

They ran into the waves, hopping on the burning sand.

"Wow. The water's actually pretty warm," Kurt said.

"Yeah, I've heard that the Atlantic is warmer than the Pacific. It's shallower, I guess."

"Well, I wouldn't know. I've never been to either before."

"Really? Never?"

"Nope. My parents never had enough money."

"You poor, deprived child," Blaine said sympathetically. "Well, we'll just have to spend as much time on the beach as possible."

They swam for a while, then sunbathed on their towels, basking in the sun.

"Hi! What are your names?"

Kurt opened his eyes to see a blonde girl standing over him. Why was she talking to them?

"I'm Blaine, and this is Kurt," Blaine introduced them. "You?"

"I'm Katie, and over there are my cousins." She pointed to some teenagers a little down the beach.

"You guys looked a little lonely, and I was wondering if you wanted to come hang out with us."

Kurt opened his mouth to say no, but Blaine got there first. "Sure!"

Kurt got up reluctantly, and the girl led them over to her group.

"Hey guys, this is Kurt and Blaine."

The others smiled at them and said hi.

"Kurt, Blaine, this is my little sister, Anna," she gestured to a skinny girl with curly brown hair, "Ellie," another girl with brown hair, "Harry," a boy with blond hair, "and James," a rather cute brown haired guy. They all looked around Kurt and Blaine's age. "We have a lot of other cousins who are here too, but they're all younger," she explained. She had an unusual accent.

"Are you Australian?" Kurt asked.

"No." She looked a little annoyed. "I live in New Zealand."

"I thought that was part of Australia."

"It's not," she said shortly. "Different countries."

"Sorry," Kurt said.

"It's okay," she smiled. "I just get that a lot, and it can get annoying after a while."

Kurt and Blaine spread out their towels next to the others.

"So you're here visiting family?" Blaine asked.

Anna spoke up. "Yeah, but it's nice to be home."

Kurt was confused. "I thought you were from New Zealand?"

"We are. We moved there a few years ago, but we grew up here."

"Oh. How long are you here?" Kurt asked.

"We're in the States for a month, but we're staying at the beach for two weeks. We've been here a couple days already," Katie said.

They seemed friendly, but Kurt was disappointed that he couldn't spend more time with Blaine. Still, it was cool to meet people from the other side of the world.

Blaine was talking to them animatedly, and they already seemed charmed by him. Just like everyone is, Kurt thought.

Kurt watched him, admiring his tanned skin and the slight ripple of muscles in his arms. Blaine's hair was curly, free from the normally copious amounts of gel he put into it, and it made him look even sexier than usual.

Bad Kurt. Stop checking out your boyfriend in front of the potentially unfriendly strangers.

Blaine looked over at him and dazzled him with a wide smile.

So much for that, thought Kurt. He smiled back, then looked away.

He noticed that Katie's eyes were lingering on Blaine's chest. She was checking him out too! But they don't know that we're together, he reminded himself. Can I say anything? Or is it better to keep quiet? he wondered.

Blaine had no such concerns. He put his arm around Kurt and pulled him close.

"Oh! Are you two together?" Katie asked.

Blaine kissed him on the cheek. "Mmhmm," he said, smiling happily.

"You make a cute couple," she said.

The others agreed, but the blond boy looked a little uncomfortable. He didn't say anything, though.

"How long have you been going out?" Ellie asked.

"A couple of months now. We went to prom together."

"That's so cool!" Anna exclaimed. "I wish I could find a girl who'd go out with me."

"Are you gay too?" Kurt asked, surprised.

"I'm bi," she replied.

Maybe they would get along better than Kurt had thought.

"I didn't know that!" Harry said, looking at her in shock.

Anna shrugged. "I only figured it out recently," she said. "And I haven't seen you guys for a couple of years, so it wasn't exactly the first thing I was going to say."

"Still…" Harry said. "You could have told us."

"Katie already knows."

"She told me months ago," Katie added.

"I guess things have changed a bit since I last saw you," Ellie said.

"I guess so," the other girls agreed.

"Any other earth-shattering revelations we should get out of the way?" Anna asked the others.

"I don't think so," they replied.

Kurt leaned against Blaine contentedly. He found that he was glad Katie had invited them to join their group. They'd have some people to hang out with and and excuse not to see Blaine's dad.

He kept quiet mostly, letting Blaine do the talking. It was nice to sit here in the sun, arm around his gorgeous boyfriend, with people who seemed to completely accept them. "Do you know what time we have to go back?" he asked Blaine.

"Mom said we could stay out all day."

"Yay!"


	3. Ice Cream and Marshmallows

Author's Note: This story may begin to have a plot sometime soon, so be prepared. I hope you enjoy this chapter. ;) Reviews are always appreciated! 

James suggested that they go for ice cream, so Blaine and Kurt went back to the house to get money.

They met the others at the end of the boardwalk, because neither of them knew the town or the possible location of ice cream shops.

"This is the best ice cream in existence," Anna told them. "Or at least, it was the last time I was here. I haven't been since the last family reunion when I was eight."

"It still is," Harry said.

"You went without me?" Anna gasped in mock horror.

"You guys were at lunch."

"I suppose that is an acceptable excuse," she said. "Just make sure it doesn't happen again."

They bought some ice cream at a small shop with fairly normal flavors, but they were able to choose whatever toppings they wanted, from gummi worms and chocolate chips, to chocolate sauce and sprinkles. Kurt got sorbet, and Blaine went with chocolate and gummi worms.

"That looks disgusting," Kurt told him.

Blaine licked his ice cream. "Oh. My. God. This is delicious."

"I highly doubt it."

"Come on! It's amazing."

Kurt had some of his sorbet, and nearly fainted. "How the _hell_ is this so good?"

"I told you! You should try the chocolate and gummi worm too."

Kurt looked at it warily. "No thanks."

"Whatever. More for me."

The others watched in amusement, having gone through similar experiences when they first tried the ice cream at this shop.

Kurt and Blaine spent the rest of the afternoon with them, and left when it was time for dinner.

"Hey, are you guys coming to the bonfire?" Ellie asked them.

"Bonfire?" Kurt said.

"It's awesome! It usually starts around ten when the sun goes down, and we stay out all night eating marshmallows and stuff."

"Sounds cool," Blaine said. "We'll probably see you later." 

At dinner, they asked Blaine's parents about the bonfire.

"What goes on there? There won't be drinking or anything, will there?" Blaine's mom asked concernedly.

"No, Ellie said that they just eat marshmallows and talk."

"Ellie?" his dad asked.

"This girl we met at the beach."

"I guess you can go," his dad said. "Don't stay out all night, though."

"Thanks, Dad!"

Kurt hadn't gone to this sort of thing before, and he hoped it wouldn't end up like Rachel's party. As they left the house, he reminded Blaine of that night.

"Remember the last time we went to a party?"

"Don't remind me," Blaine groaned. "This isn't exactly a party though."

"Still."

They walked out to the beach. Even though the sun had gone down, it was hot and humid outside. The bonfire was large, sending up sparks and making the already warm night even hotter. There were logs all around the fire, with quite a few people already sitting on them.

Katie and the others said hi, and she introduced them to the rest of the people there. Kurt was sure he wouldn't be able to remember all their names, but he noticed that Katie was sitting next to a guy who looked a little like Blaine, but taller and with longer hair.

"This is Toby," she told them.

"Hey," Toby said.

Guess that's her type, Kurt thought.

The conversation flowed easily. Anna passed them some marshmallows and Graham crackers.

"Where's the chocolate?" Kurt asked her.

"Over there somewhere." She pointed across the fire and started laughing suddenly.

"What?"

"I just- sorry-" she calmed down a bit. "This just reminds me of a festival we went to. We were eating the chocolate, and we lost it, and it went all over my friend's pants…"

Kurt and Blaine just looked at her.

"It was funnier at the time."

"I'm sure," Kurt said.

"Do you guys want some beer?"

Kurt looked at Blaine.

"It won't be like that Kurt."

"If you say so…"

She passed them a bottle and a bar of chocolate.

The gathering had split into groups of two or three, and Katie seemed to be getting on very well with the guy called Toby. They were pressed so close together it was hard to tell whose hands were whose.

"Why are you sitting with us?" Blaine asked Anna.

"Sorry," she said. "I can leave if you want."

"I didn't mean it like that. I meant, why aren't you finding a guy of your own?"

She looked a little sad. "They never seem to go for me. They always go for my sister first, and only talk to me if they don't work out with her."

"That seems a bit unfair."

"I don't think she realizes that it's like that, though. She's the blonde one," Anna said bitterly.

"I think that guy's checking you out." Blaine pointed to a guy with blond hair on the other side of the fire.

"Really?"

"He keeps looking at you."

She smiled. "Maybe I'll go talk to him, then. See you."

"Bye!"

She went to sit next to him.

Kurt looked at Blaine in amazement. "How do you do that?"

"What?"

"Just… make people feel happy."

"I don't know. I just tell them the truth, I guess."

"I love you."

"I love you too," Blaine said. 

The space around the fire had emptied until it was just the two of them. They'd taken turns sipping from the bottle, and had made tons of s'mores. Blaine usually ended up burning his marshmallows, and peeled the burnt bits off to get at the gooey insides.

"How can you eat them like that?"

"Like this!" Blaine demonstrated.

"Ew." Kurt had toasted every one of his marshmallows to golden brown perfection, and eaten them with Graham crackers and chocolate.

Blaine took another sip. "Who knew that beer tasted so good with marshmallows?"

"I don't know. Let me try it." Kurt leaned forward and kissed him. He pulled back.

"You're right. It does taste pretty good."

Blaine hugged him close and went in for a longer kiss.

"I'm really glad you came with us."

"Me too." 

They weren't sure what time it was when they got back to the house, but it was probably later than it should have been.

Kurt tripped over the steps up to the back porch. This seemed to strike him as unbelievably hilarious, and he let out a loud giggle.

"Shhh!"

"Sorry," Kurt laughed.

Blaine helped him up, and opened the door as quietly as he could. He led Kurt up the stairs. "Keep quiet," he whispered.

"Okay," Kurt said loudly.

Blaine shook his head and helped Kurt into bed.

"This looks somewhat familiar," Kurt observed. "Only it was the other way around last time."

"I wouldn't know," Blaine answered. "I don't remember much after kissing Rachel."

Kurt became more serious. "I was so jealous that night. I never told you that, did I?"

"I am sorry for doing that to you. I didn't know you liked me at the time."

"I was pretty obvious," Kurt said.

"Not to me. I tend not to notice unless you shove something in my face."

"Oh, is _that_ what happened with Rachel."

"Hey!" He thought for a second. "Pretty much, actually."

He kissed Kurt on the forehead, then turned to leave the room.

"No!" Kurt said. "Stay!"

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"You're probably right. Night, then."

"Night. I love you, Kurt."

"Love you, Blaine."


	4. A Words

Author's Note: What's that you say? A plot? Inconceivable! Hope you like the chapter. Please read and review! 

At breakfast the next morning, Blaine's parents wanted to know what had happened at the bonfire.

"How was it?" his mother asked.

"Pretty good," Blaine replied. "There were a lot of people there."

"Any girls?" his dad asked.

"It was about half-and-half."

"Notice any good looking ones?"

"Dad!"

"I just wondered if you might be starting to like girls. It can happen late for some guys."

"John." Blaine's mother said. "That's rather insensitive."

"How is it insensitive?"

"Well, for one thing, I'm _gay_," Blaine reminded him.

"I know you think you are…"

"Please stop it, dad."

Blaine's father held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. Blaine tried not to look at Kurt, not wanting to see the expression on his face. They finished their breakfast in silence, and then left for the beach.

Blaine was fuming with anger. "I can't _believe _him! Why is it such a problem for me to like guys instead of girls?"

Kurt didn't know what to say. He had known there was a good reason Blaine didn't want his dad to find out about their relationship, but it was still shocking to see it first hand. Kurt's dad would never have said something like that.

"Just one guy, though, right?" he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah." Blaine ran his hands through his hair, expressing his frustration. "I'm sorry you had to hear that."

"It's okay."

"No. It's really not. But I can't do anything to change it, except hope that he becomes less of an asshole as I get older."

Hearing that was more painful for Kurt than anything Blaine's dad had said. That Blaine could call his dad something like that showed how flawed their relationship was, and he suddenly understood why Blaine was so jealous of his bond with Burt.

Once they reached the sand, they realized that they'd forgotten to change into swimsuits in their haste to leave the house.

"We're incredibly smart," Kurt said. "and that is why we forgot to bring the most important thing for a day at the beach."

"We could go back," Blaine suggested.

"Nah. Let's just sit and talk or something."

"Do you think Katie and the others are here?" They looked around the beach, but it wasn't very busy. The remains of the bonfire were still apparent, however.

"You know…" Blaine said.

"What?" Kurt asked, bracing himself for one of Blaine's crazy ideas.

"We could just swim in our clothes."

"But then we'd be all wet and sticky and generally disgusting."

"It'll be fun!" It was clear that Blaine had already made up his mind. Kurt considered it.

"Would it make you happy?"

Blaine gave him the adorable puppy eyes that Kurt could never refuse. "It really, really would."

"Fine," Kurt said, sounding more annoyed than he actually was.

"Thank you!"

They left their shirts on the beach, and waded into the water. Thankfully, they'd both worn shorts; it would have been insane to wear anything warmer. It was already over eighty degrees, though the sun wasn't even halfway into the sky.

Kurt's shorts billowed around his legs. It was an unfamiliar sensation, since he would never have done something like this by himself.

"See?" Blaine said. "It's not so bad."

It wasn't, Kurt admitted to himself. He would never tell Blaine that though.

"It's going to take me ages to wash these shorts."

"Well, that's the price you pay, I guess."

"For what?"

Blaine didn't appear to have thought of anything clever to say to that. "Um…"

"Swimming with my sexy boyfriend?"

"If you want my body, and you think I'm sexy…" Blaine sang.

"Oh my God," Kurt said. "It's confirmed. You're certifiably… not insane… hmm…"

"Awesome? Amazing? Adorable? Possibly even… attractive?" Blaine waggled his eyebrows.

"What's with the A words?"

Blaine shrugged. "I like the letter A. It suits my mood."

"You're so weird," Kurt told him.

"But you love me anyway." Blaine smiled winningly.

"I'm beginning to reconsider that."

"No! I love you! Don't leeeaaave meeeeeeeeeeee!" Blaine dropped to his knees and grabbed Kurt's hand. This was made more difficult by the water, which splashed into Kurt's face and soaked Blaine's hair.

"Fine," Kurt laughed. "I love you. But you already knew that."

"Thank you!" Blaine sprang up and hugged him, almost knocking Kurt over. Kurt just smiled and resigned himself to having a boyfriend who was certifiably amazing. 

After about an hour of swimming, Kurt was beginning to get tired of humoring Blaine. "Can we go and sit on the beach or something?"

Blaine pouted.

"C'mon, we've been swimming for hours. Hey! There's James!" He'd spotted the brown haired boy heading towards them.

"Hi!"

"Where are the others?" Kurt asked.

"They'll be here soon. Their parents don't let them out until they're completely covered in sunscreen and bug repellent."

Kurt smiled. His dad was exactly the same, but Kurt didn't really mind. He burned easily.

The rest of them arrived soon enough, and Blaine asked if they had any particular plans.

"Nah, we usually just lie around and do nothing." Anna said.

"We could make a sandcastle!" Katie said excitedly.

"Aren't we a little old for that?" Harry asked.

"Nobody is too old for sandcastles," Katie said seriously.

"I agree with Katie," Blaine said in the same tone. He struggled to keep a straight face, but failed miserably. "This is going to be _epic_."

"I think you're forgetting something," Kurt said.

"What?"

"We don't actually have any shovels, or buckets, or sandcastle making equipment of any kind."

"We have hands, don't we?" Blaine said.

"Yes…"

"So we'll make drip castles!"

"Drip castles?" Kurt said, raising an eyebrow.

"You've never made drip castles." Blaine was shocked.

"Seriously, what are they?"

"I can't believe this! Drip castles are my childhood!" Blaine cried.

"It's okay," Anna said. "We can teach him how."

Kurt had fun making the drip castles, and that was how they spent the the rest of the morning. At around midday, he and Blaine said goodbye to the others and went back to the house for lunch.

"You okay?" Kurt asked Blaine.

"I'm fine."

It was much cooler inside the house.

"Hi!" Blaine said, seeing his mother on the couch.

She jumped and turned to look at them. "Sorry. I was just thinking."

"Okay..." Blaine said. His mother was rarely caught off guard. "What were you thinking about?"

"You, I guess."

He was a little worried now. "Did I do something wrong?"

Kurt was looking concerned. "Yeah, I'm sorry. We didn't mean to stay out so late last night."

"No, that's fine. I just wanted to say... Blaine... You know I accept you, right?"

Blaine was surprised. He knew his mother cared about him. After all, she was the one who had suggested that he go to Dalton after the bullying he'd received at his old school. But she had never told him outright that she was okay with him being gay.

"Sure, mom."

"I mean... if there's anything you wanted to tell me, I'm always here to listen." She was looking from Blaine to Kurt, and Blaine suddenly realized that she knew.

"Thanks, mom. There is something I've wanted to tell you, actually." He looked at Kurt, and Kurt smiled at him, trusting that he'd do the right thing. "Kurt and I... we're in love. We love each other." He took Kurt's hand and squeezed it, letting him know that it would be okay.

Mrs Anderson nodded, her suspicions confirmed. "I'm glad you told me. I'm happy for you, Blaine. And you, Kurt," she said. "But... maybe not tell your father just yet, is that all right?"

"That's fine." Blaine smiled in relief, feeling the warm glow of something he'd been missing for a while. Acceptance.


	5. All I Want

Author's Note: Most of you probably recognize the song, but for those who don't, lyrics are credited to Darren Criss. I also realized that I forgot to mention that Glee doesn't belong to me and I'm only borrowing a couple of the characters for a while. That seems pretty obvious to me, since there would be a lot more boykissing if I owned Glee... but still. The only things that belong to me are the story and the OC's. Hope you enjoy the chapter! :D Please read and review!

It was still sort of unbelievable to Blaine that his mother was okay with his relationship with Kurt. He'd always got the impression that she was sympathetic to his problems, but she usually let his father do the talking.

"I don't think I've ever been this happy," he told Kurt.

"You deserve it," Kurt replied. "Hell, everyone deserves to have their parents support them in who they love."

"I know… but I just never quite thought that I'd get that."

Kurt nodded, looking a little down. "It makes me sad that you haven't gotten to be happy your whole life."

"I'm happy now though. Happier than I can say." They were sitting on Blaine's bed after the discussion with his mother. He had a bit more than happiness in his expression as he looked into Kurt's eyes.

"I think I'll, um… go to my room now," Kurt said, blushing.

"Why?"

"So that I can get changed out of these disgusting shorts."

"You can't do that in here?"

"No!" Kurt cried.

"Because I'd be happy to help," Blaine said in a husky voice.

"Blaine. Not really appropriate with your mom downstairs."

"I'm not allowed to want my boyfriend?"

"Of course you are, but…"

Blaine moved closer to him on the bed. His eyes were searching Kurt's face as though he could find everything he needed right there in the features he loved so much. Blaine remembered the time, months ago; when he thought Kurt was only a friend. That he only wanted to be close to the boy because they connected so well, and so that he could help him. When he thought that is was perfectly normal to think of Kurt all the time. He used to watch movies by himself when he was bored, and often he would turn to tell Kurt something, only to remember that he wasn't there. He wondered now how he could have been so blind. It felt like he was the last one to know that he was in love with Kurt, but once he fell, he fell hard. He would have done anything to be with the boy next to him, and he wanted to be with Kurt in every way possible.

"All I want is you."

Kurt leaned his head on Blaine's shoulder. "I'm just not ready for that yet."

"I understand," Blaine told him. He really did. Kurt had never been all that comfortable with this sort of thing. He had once told Blaine that he liked Broadway musicals because 'the touch of the fingertips is as sexy as it gets.'

Blaine took his hand, and stared after him wistfully when Kurt left to get changed. Then he had an idea.

The next day, Kurt was down to the kitchen before his boyfriend. "Is Blaine up yet?" he asked Mrs Anderson.

"No, he likes to sleep late sometimes. You can wake him up if you want."

Kurt went upstairs to Blaine's room. The door was cracked, so he pushed it open. He was surprised to find Blaine awake. The other boy was hunched over a piece of paper, and seemed to be scribbling furiously.

"What are you doing?" Kurt asked curiously.

Blaine jumped and clutched the paper to him. "Nothing!"

"Really."

"Yep."

"Well if you finish doing 'nothing', breakfast is ready."

"I'll come down in a minute."

Kurt closed the door, and Blaine sighed in relief. He wanted his idea to be a surprise.

That whole day, Blaine seemed unusually nervous.

"What is wrong with you?" Kurt asked him.

"Nothing. I'm fine."

"Is this the same 'nothing' as before?"

"Maybe…"

Later, after the sun had set, the two left the house for the night's bonfire.

For some reason, Blaine was carrying a guitar. Kurt hadn't even known that he'd brought it with him.

"What's that for?" he asked.

"I thought it might be fun to play it tonight."

"That'll be nice," Kurt said. He was sure that Blaine had missed singing in the few weeks they'd been off school.

They reached the fire, and Blaine's guitar immediately drew attention.

"You play guitar?" Ellie asked.

"Yeah…" he was suddenly a little shy. "Do you guys mind if I sing?"

There was a chorus of 'no's' from around the fire.

Kurt sat on the sand, his back to the fire, and Blaine sat on a log in front of him. Blaine began to strum. It was an unfamiliar tune, but Kurt instantly liked it.

_My life is a,  
>series of actors changing places<br>except there's no back stage  
>and there's no place for me.<em>

The rest of the kids around the fire smiled. It was a good beginning. Kurt was entranced, his eyes fixated on Blaine's fingers.

_It's okay though,_  
><em>the jokes on the television<em>  
><em>make me laugh,<em>  
><em>remind me that it's okay<em>  
><em>not to have a backstage or a place to hide.<em>

_Well I've got dinner on my plate,_  
><em>got my paycheck yesterday.<em>  
><em>How great, how cool.<em>  
><em>I've got places, I've got friends,<em>  
><em>I've got Joey, Ross, and Chandler, then..<em>  
><em>there's you.<em>

That line made Kurt laugh. Blaine obviously liked Friends as much as he did.

_And now, how, we like to say that we're in love,_  
><em>doesn't it, seem like that should be enough,<em>  
><em>but, the world will roll their eyes but I still think,<em>  
><em>well I still think that we're in love.<em>

The lyrics fit their situation perfectly. People didn't always accept that they loved each other, but they made it work anyway.

_Oh shoes and jackets,  
>purses and tennis rackets,<br>make their way as they please,  
>in those SUVs to the country club.<em>

_I don't play much,_  
><em>but I do enjoy having the ball in my court,<em>  
><em>and what's more,<em>  
><em>I like playing, for love.<em>

_But I've got arms and you've got legs,_  
><em>together we've made some mistakes.<em>  
><em>But hey, we're doing well!<em>

That seemed to be about the problems that they'd had early in their relationship, when Blaine wasn't sure what he wanted and Kurt was confused.

_Well I've got reason to believe,  
>in the power of you and me to break,<br>this spell.  
><em>

Kurt felt like cheering, but he didn't want to interrupt.

_And now, how, we like to say that we're in love,  
>doesn't it, seem like that should be enough,<br>but, the world will roll their eyes but I still think,  
>well I still think that we're in love.<em>

_One more question:_  
><em>how is this one big lesson?<em>  
><em>I don't think that there's a quiz,<em>  
><em>but if there is I'll be, outside;<em>  
><em>playing in the yard,<em>  
><em>swinging on monkey bars,<em>  
><em>exercising my right to this recess from this lesson<em>  
><em>that I tried, ohh<em>

_But I've got arms and you've got legs,_  
><em>together we've made some mistakes.<em>  
><em>But hey, we're doing well!<em>

_Well I've got reason, to believe,_  
><em>in the power of you and me to break,<em>  
><em>this spell.<em>

_And now, how, we like to say that we're in love,_  
><em>doesn't it, seem like that should be enough,<em>  
><em>but, the world will roll their eyes but I still think,<em>  
><em>well I still think that we're in love.<em>  
><em>well I still think that we're in love, love, love.<em>  
><em>well I still think that we're in love.<em>  
><em>Ooh….<em>

Blaine trailed off. There was a shower of applause as the audience realized that the song was over. Kurt was speechless, but he clapped harder than anyone.

"Did you write that?" Katie asked.

"Yeah. For Kurt."

Kurt was shocked. Blaine had written that beautiful song… about him?

"Thank you," he said.

"I love you," Blaine told him. It was all he needed to say.


	6. Sometimes it Rains

Author's Note: Once again, I do not own Glee. I hope you like this chapter, it was hard for me to write. Please read and review!

For the first time since they had arrived, it was raining. Water poured from the sky in sheets, forcing them to stay inside. Kurt groaned, dreading a day spent with Blaine's parents. Mrs Anderson was kind, but it would be awkward with Blaine's dad there.

He got out of bed reluctantly, knowing he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep.

Blaine was already up, and he smiled at Kurt apologetically when the other boy appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Morning," Kurt said.

"Good morning!" Blaine's mother said brightly. "I've had a wonderful idea."

"What is it?" Kurt asked. He didn't know Mrs Anderson well enough to judge whether her sense of a 'wonderful idea' was as skewed as her son's.

"I thought that John and I could go to one of the old plantations around here. The have some lovely historical sites in this area. You can come if you want," she offered. "But it's fine if you'd like to stay at home."

The latter option was sounding pretty good to Kurt. He glanced at Blaine and could tell that his boyfriend agreed.

"I think we'll stay here," Blaine answered.

"Are you sure you want to go in the rain though?" Kurt asked. He ignored Blaine's warning look.

"I'm sure it'll be fine. There should be plenty to do inside."

"What time will be you be back?"

"Around ten maybe? We might go out for dinner."

"Sounds good." Kurt said.

Blaine's parents left about half an hour later.

As soon as his parents pulled out of the driveway, Blaine turned to Kurt excitedly. "This is going to be _awesome_."

The two boys put on music and turned it up so that it blasted loudly from the speakers. The house had a nice sound system and two flat screen televisions, one upstairs and one in the living room. Kurt and Blaine weren't really interested in watching television though. They were too absorbed in each other.

They quickly got to the point they'd been at a few nights ago right before Blaine's dad came in. Both boys were panting, thrilled to be completely alone.

Kurt gazed at Blaine, enraptured. His boyfriend's eyes were a dark brown, the way they got when he was feeling particularly into their make out sessions. "You're amazing," Kurt whispered.

"Not as amazing as you," Blaine said.

They continued like that until about lunchtime, when both of them got hungry.

"Want a sandwich?" Blaine asked.

"Sure."

He fixed them the two of them lunch, and Kurt watched him adoringly. It was so cute to see Blaine being domestic. He knew it was unrealistic, but he found himself picturing them living together, maybe in an apartment in New York.

They spent the rest of the day doing whatever they felt like, which usually meant kissing on the couch.

It began to get dark, and it was raining just as hard as it had been when they woke up. The music was still loud, loud enough that they couldn't even hear the rain pounding outside the house. That was the reason they didn't notice anything until the front door slammed open.

"What the _hell _are you doing?" Mr Anderson yelled.

"Language, dad," Blaine said sarcastically.

Mrs Anderson put a hand on her husband's shoulder consolingly. "John, calm down."

"Calm? You want me to be _calm, _when I come home to find my only son eating this fag's face?" He sent a hateful look at Kurt.

Kurt shrank back against Blaine.

"Don't call him that," Blaine said.

"I'll call him whatever I want." He turned to look at Kurt. "I welcome you into my home, let my son invite you to the beach, and you repay me like _this?_ I should have known that my son wouldn't want to hang out with a _normal _kid," he said, shaking his head in disgust.

Kurt felt anger boiling in his stomach. "How dare you? In case you've forgotten, _your son _is gay too."

"He only thinks he is because fags like you corrupted him!" Mr Anderson screamed. His grey eyes had darkened with hatred. It was terrifying, but the two boys stood their ground.

"Dad," Blaine said. "Dad, I love him." He was sobbing now. "I love him! Why can't you accept that?"

Mr Anderson took a deep breath, appearing to try to calm himself down. "I can't listen to this anymore." He seemed to make up his mind. "I want you out."

"What?" Blaine gasped.

"You heard me."

"John! Please reconsider," Blaine's mother said. "You can't turn them out."

"I can and I will. I won't have two fags under my roof."

"This is your son!" Mrs Anderson shouted. "And clearly, he loves Kurt! Don't you understand that?"

Mr Anderson looked too angry to respond.

She turned to Blaine and Kurt. "Let me talk to him. I'm sure he'll change his mind."

The two boys left the living room and went upstairs.

Blaine collapsed on his bed, crying.

Kurt hugged him, wishing there was something he could do.

"What are we going to do?" Blaine whispered.

"I don't know," Kurt said. "But I'll be there with you no matter what, I promise."

They sat like that until Blaine's mom called to them from downstairs. "You can come down now!"

They walked downstairs hand in hand.

Blaine's dad seemed to have calmed down. "You can stay," he told them.

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand reassuringly. They wouldn't have to leave.

"But," his father said. "I won't have you… _doing anything_... while you're under my roof. I can't tolerate that."

Blaine stood up straight and glared at his father. "I can't believe you! You're supposed to be a good person! You're always talking about love and acceptance, but you can't accept anything but a perfect, _straight,_ boy as your son." He took a breath to keep himself from screaming. "I can't take it anymore. I'm leaving."

Blaine's mother put her hands to her mouth. "Blaine, you can't leave!" She seemed near to tears.

Blaine almost changed his mind. He didn't want to hurt his mother. But he couldn't stay here. "I'm sorry Mom. I can't live in the same house with him." He smiled sadly. "I love you."

"I'll miss you," she said softly.

The two boys went upstairs for their suitcases. "I'm sorry," Blaine told Kurt. "I shouldn't have said that without asking you."

"I'm here with you whatever happens, remember?" He hugged Blaine. "I'm proud of you."

As they left the house, Kurt turned back to look at Blaine's mother, sad for the pain they were causing her. "I'm sorry," he said. Then they closed the door and headed out into the rain.


	7. One Step Closer to You

They dragged their suitcases until they reached a house that appeared to be unoccupied. The two boys sank down on the back porch to get out of the rain.

"What are we going to do?" Blaine moaned.

"Well, we can't sleep out in the rain."

"Thanks for that, genius."

"Well, sorry!" Kurt folded his arms. "I'm not the one who decided to leave in the middle of a thunderstorm."

"You agreed!"

"I know. Sorry. That was mean."

"I'm sorry too," Blaine said. "I shouldn't have snapped at you." He rubbed his temple, trying to think. "We could call your dad," he suggested.

"What can he do?" Kurt said. "He's all the way in Ohio."

"I don't know! It was just a suggestion." He sighed in frustration. "I should stop doing stuff before I think about it properly."

"It was the right decision. We wouldn't have felt safe staying at your house." Kurt shuddered, thinking of the look in Mr Anderson's icy grey eyes.

Blaine sat up suddenly. "Ooh! Idea!"

"Yes?" Kurt said.

"We could stay with Katie and Anna!"

"Katie?" Kurt said doubtfully.

"Sure! We're friends, right?"

"Yeah, but we barely know them. I don't know if they'd be willing to take us in. We haven't even met their parents."

"What choice do we have?" Blaine asked. "We don't really know anyone else."

Kurt was sure he'd regret it, but he agreed.

Anna had pointed out the house they were staying in once, so at least they knew where it was. They walked a few streets down, and stood looking up at the house.

"So what do we do? Just knock on the door?" Blaine asked.

"I don't know! This was your idea," Kurt said.

Blaine leaned down and picked up a stone.

"Wait-"

He threw it so that it tapped lightly on one of the windows on the second floor.

"This is totally insane," Kurt moaned. "You don't even know if that was the right window!"

Blaine shrugged. "Too late now."

They waited a few moments, hoping that they hadn't woken the girls' parents.

Then the window opened and Katie poked her head out. She looked around and spotted them staring hopefully up at the window.

"What the hell are you guys doing?" she hissed. "You aren't propositioning me or something, are you? I thought you were gay…" She tended to use long words when she was flustered.

"No! Can you just come down here? We need to talk to you," they said desperately.

She closed the window, and Kurt's heart sank. "What do we do now?"

Blaine looked defeated, and slumped down onto the ground.

"So? What's up?" The voice came from behind them.

The two boys spun around. "How did you get there?"

She smiled. "I have my ways."

There was silence for a moment, then she said, "Why don't you guys come under the porch? You look soaked." She noticed their suitcases. "And why have you brought all your stuff?"

"That's what we need to talk to you about," Kurt said.

They sat down at the table on the porch, and Katie sat across from them, looking expectant. "So? Tell."

Blaine began to talk very fast. "So they went out and then they came back and my dad saw us kissing and he kicked us out-"

She held up a hand, looking concerned. "Wait. Slow down. Your dad kicked you out? Why?"

Kurt decided he might be more coherent. "Blaine's parents went out for the day and left us alone. They came back earlier than we expected, and his dad saw us kissing. He didn't know we were together, and he doesn't accept that Blaine's gay, so he got really angry and kicked us out."

"Just because you were kissing? That seems really extreme."

"Actually, we chose to leave," Blaine corrected her.

"I'm a little confused."

"He wouldn't accept us, so we decided to leave. Before we'd thought it through very well…"

"I'm starting to see why you came to me."

"Yeah."

"You need a place to stay, right?"

"Sorry," Blaine said. "This is really rude of us, I realize."

"Under the circumstances, I don't mind. It might be hard to convince my parents though."

"Wait, you're okay with it?"

"Of course! You're my friends," she said.

"Thank you," Kurt said sincerely.

"Wait here," she told them.

They waited nervously while she went inside and woke up her parents. They heard raised voices, but she came back out a few minutes later.

"I explained what happened, and they said you can stay in the loft."

"Really?" Kurt was surprised that her parents had agreed. "You must be very convincing."

She shrugged. "They trust me. I don't do stuff that they object to most of the time, so they usually agree to things that are important to me."

The two boys went inside and thanked her parents.

"We couldn't let you stay out in the rain after what you've been through," her mother said.

"I'll show you up to the loft," Katie said.

As they walked upstairs, Kurt realized that they hadn't seen Anna. "Where's your sister?"

"She went to stay with Ellie for the night."

The house was similar to the one they had been staying in, with several bedrooms and a loft instead of an attic. She set up a couple of beds on the couches in the loft.

"I hope you guys'll be comfortable enough. I'm really sorry for what happened to you."

"It's not your fault!" Blaine said.

"It still makes me sad though. I've heard about this sort of stuff but it's never happened to anyone I knew."

They said goodnight to her and turned out the light.

Kurt felt scared, wondering what they'd do for the rest of the time they were supposed to be spending here, and how they would get home.

He was absorbed in his own thoughts, until he heard Blaine trying to muffle his sobs on the other couch. He got up and cradled his boyfriend. Blaine clung to him, and Kurt's heart was breaking to see him like this. Then Kurt thought of a beautiful song that he'd heard Blaine listening to once. He began to sing softly,

_I've been down for far too long_

_Till my faith was nearly gone_

_I never knew somebody just like you_

_Could be a friend I could call my own_

Blaine quieted a little, listening to the song. It wasn't the sort of thing Kurt usually listened to, and it made him happy to think that Kurt had remembered it after he'd played it in the car.

_Till I let go of a broken heart_

_I let go to an open heart_

_I let go of my broken dreams_

_I let go to the mystery_

_And I believe in the miracle_

_I believe in the spiritual_

_I believe in the one above_

_I believe in the one I love_

He knew that Kurt didn't believe in God, but even after all he'd been through, Blaine still thought there was someone watching over him. After all, he'd found Kurt, hadn't he?

_I take one step closer to you_

_I just take one step closer to you_

_Even when I'm falling down_

_My heart says follow through_

_I take one step closer to you_

_I never meant to hurt you, no_

_And you never meant to hurt me too_

_But it seems like we always do_

_And even though I'm scared sometimes_

_If I ever see you fallen down_

_I'll be the one that's there for you_

Kurt hugged him closer.

_So I let go of a broken heart_

_I let go to an open heart_

_I let go of my broken dreams_

_I let go to the mystery_

_And I believe in the miracle_

_I believe in the spiritual_

_I believe in the one above_

_I believe in the one I love_

_And take one step closer to you_

"Keep on walking sweet baby," Blaine sang, knowing the song by heart.

_I just take one step closer to you_

_Even when I'm falling down_

_My heart says follow through_

"I take one step closer to you…"

_I just take one step closer to you_

_I just take one step closer to you_

_I keep on walking to you, I'm walking_

_I keep on walking to you, I'm walking_

_I keep on walking to you, I'm walking_

_And I'm never going to stop, now_

_Even when I'm falling down_

_My heart says follow through_

_I'll take one step closer_

_I'll take two steps closer_

_Just take one step closer to you_

_And even when I'm falling down_

_My heart says follow through_

_I just take one step closer to you_

"Keep on walking sweet baby…"

And Kurt kept holding on to Blaine until they both fell asleep, safe in each other's arms.

Author's Note: The song is "One Step Closer to You" by Michael Franti (with Pink on backing vocals! Yay!) and you can listen to it here www. yout ube .com/watch?v=B4RaRv S8qq0 (take out the spaces). The original singer's voice is quite different to Kurt's, but I think he could pull it off. He's cool like that. ;) I considered using "Not Alone" which would also fit the situation, but I decided to be a rebel and use another one of my favourite songs. Hope you like the chapter. Please read and review!


	8. Surfing

Author's Note: This chapter has a little more fluff in it, to hopefully help you recover from the angst of the last two. (Who am I kidding? I love angst. But fluff is awesome too.) Besides my fanfiction account, I also have a Tumblr, if any of you want to check it out. (www .de mentedappletree . m) By the way, I love reviews. They help me understand what people like and don't like, and I always want to improve my writing in any way I can. So please take the time to review, if you can. Thank you! Enjoy the chapter!

Blaine woke, confused about where he was. Light streamed in through the large windows of the loft. His head was resting on a warm, very comfortable chest. He turned to look at Kurt, and it all came crashing back. Kurt smiled at him sleepily. "Hi."  
>"Hi." He pulled his arm out from under Kurt and shook it to bring back the circulation.<br>"Are you okay?" Kurt asked him.  
>He nodded mutely, not entirely sure if it was true. He didn't want Kurt to worry about him.<br>"Ready to go downstairs?"  
>He got up heavily, not really wanting to face a day where he was an exile from his own house. The fact that it had been his choice to leave didn't really affect the crushed feeling in his chest, or the sickness when he remembered the disgust in his father's eyes.<br>Kurt seemed to see through his affectation of normality. "It'll turn out okay, you know. We'll figure something out."  
>"Thanks."<br>They walked down to the kitchen. Katie was helping with breakfast, laughing at something her mom had said. The scene caused Blaine another pang of sadness, bringing to mind the times when he'd done the same with his mother.  
>"Hey!" she said. "You want waffles?"<br>It smelled really good. There was real maple syrup, along with blueberries and strawberries on the table. This cheered him up somewhat. "I love waffles!"  
>Katie passed each of them a fresh waffle, and they sat down to eat. Blaine realized something was missing. "No bacon?"<br>"I'm vegetarian," she explained.  
>"Huh." Interesting, he thought.<br>Kurt looked at her approvingly. "Very good for the skin."  
>"I'm more into the ethics of it," she said, laughing a little. "But that's an added bonus."<br>Blaine looked sadly at his plate, but the waffles tasted good anyway.  
>"Thank you again," he said to Katie's mom.<br>"You're very welcome. I'm Karina. I wish we had met under better circumstances. Katie doesn't always bring her friends home to meet us. I think she's embarrassed," she said teasingly, looking at her daughter.  
>"Why would I be embarrassed?" Katie asked. "You make good food." She smiled at her mom.<br>Blaine felt sad again. "Can I call my mom?" he asked.  
>"Sure. The phone's over there."<br>Blaine left Kurt at the table, where he was talking easily with Katie and her mother, and went into the living room.  
>He dialled the number, hoping that it was his mother who would pick up. "Hello?" came her voice on the other end.<br>"It's me. Blaine."  
>"Blaine!"<br>"Mom, shh," he told her.  
>"Sorry," she said quietly. "Where are you honey? Are you safe? Is Kurt with you?"<br>"We're staying with friends," he said. "And yes, we're fine. I just wanted to call to make sure you wouldn't worry."  
>"I'll worry anyway. I am worrying. I wish you'd come home."<br>"I can't." Blaine said. "Not until he stops being an ignorant-"  
>"Blaine."<br>He fell silent. "I'll call you if anything happens, okay? I miss you."  
>"I miss you too, honey. I love you."<br>"Love you too, Mom."  
>He hung up the phone, wishing there was some way he could avoid causing the pain he heard in her voice.<p>

The rain from last night had cleared, though the sand was still wet. It could be just like any other day. Kurt had talked with Katie and Karina, while also listening to Blaine talk on the phone. He could hear how much Blaine hated having to hurt his mother, but he was so proud of his boyfriend for standing up to his father.  
>Blaine came back into the kitchen. "What do you want to do today?" Kurt asked him.<br>"Well, I don't know if you guys would be interested," Katie said, "but my uncle offered to teach me to surf this afternoon."  
>Kurt could see that Blaine really wanted to do this. He turned to Kurt with a hopeful expression on his face. "Can we?"<br>Puppy eyes again. This really wasn't fair. "Do we have to?"  
>"It's surfing, Kurt. How can you not want to go surfing?"<br>"Very easily," Kurt said sardonically.  
>"Please?" Blaine said, and Kurt just couldn't resist those pleading eyes.<br>"The things I do for you," Kurt said.  
>Katie had been watching this exchange in amusement. "We should go soon. My uncle wanted to meet me at ten."<br>"He won't mind that we're coming along?" Kurt asked hopefully.  
>"You're not getting out of it that easily," Katie said. "He loves people. The more, the better."<br>They changed into their swimsuits, and met her uncle on the shore. Katie must have let him know they were coming, because he had four surfboards.  
>"This is Tom," she introduced him. He was tall, with dark hair and stubble. He didn't look particularly old, maybe in his thirties. Tom smiled warmly and shook both boys' hands.<br>"Tom, meet Blaine and Kurt."  
>"So, let's get started," Tom said.<br>He gave each of them a board and instructed Katie to swim out from shore a bit. She'd done it before, and she was quickly standing up, surfing fairly well for someone who wasn't that experienced.  
>Blaine went next. He was fine swimming out, but stood up too quickly and fell off. Kurt laughed, and Blaine tried to glare at him. It just made him laugh harder. He looked like an angry hedgehog.<br>"You try it," Blaine said.  
>Kurt was a little nervous, but eager to show Blaine up. He swam out on the board, and began to stand nervously when Tom told him he should. Calm down, he told himself. It can't be any worse than the Gaga heels. He straightened gracefully, and surprised at how easily he took to surfing. He got back to shore and gave Blaine a smug look.<br>"Shut up," Blaine told him.  
>"I didn't say anything."<br>"No, but you were thinking it."  
>After a few more tries, Blaine improved somewhat and they were all surfing pretty well. He'd never tell Blaine, but the fact that he made Kurt try new things was one of the things he liked about his boyfriend. He'd actually enjoyed the surfing, probably because he was good at it. Once they'd finished surfing, they swam for a while.<br>Tom left for lunch, and the three of them watched him go. Blaine turned to Katie and said, "Is it just me, or is everyone in your family ridiculously good looking?"  
>She raised an eyebrow. "You know, if you weren't gay, I'd swear you were hitting on me."<br>"It's all right," Kurt said. "He does that to everyone."  
>"I do not!"<br>"Of course you do. You flirt with absolutely everyone, Blaine."  
>Blaine folded his arms and turned away.<br>"You're acting like a five-year-old," Kurt said.  
>"Hmph."<br>Kurt leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you anyway."  
>Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt's neck, seeming even more like a small child.<br>"You guys are so cute," Katie said.  
>"Where's that guy you were with? What's his name? Toby?"<br>"He should be out soon."

"You seemed to be having fun at the bonfire," Kurt commented.

"It did seem to be going rather well," she agreed. She had perfected that delicately snarky tone of voice.  
>They were laughing, having almost forgotten their worries about the fight with Blaine's dad. However, they were immediately reminded when they saw him walking towards them down the beach.<p>

A/N: Sorry for the cliff hanger. Next chapter soon, hopefully.


	9. Demands

A/N: This probably should have been part of the previous chapter, but I was having a bit of writer's block last night. A reminder, since I often forget to say this, I do _not _own Glee. It probably wouldn't turn out well if I did, for two reasons: A) I can't write the other characters on the show (and I really hope these two are in character enough to be believable), and B) It probably would piss a lot of people off to have Blaine and Kurt attached to each other by the lips instead of there being an actual plot (although I think there are several million fangirls who would disagree). Have fun reading!

Blaine stiffened. "What is he doing here?"

"It could be a coincidence," Kurt said. He didn't believe it though.

Blaine's father was making straight for them, and his mother wasn't anywhere in sight.

"Hello, Blaine."

Blaine clamped his jaw shut. He was pretty sure if he opened his mouth, he would really regret whatever came out.

"I want you to come home," his father said.

"Wait- what?" That was not what he had been anticipating. "You insult me, you insult my boyfriend, you _kick us out_," he attempted to steady himself, not wanting to create a scene, "and you expect me to come home just like that?"

"I'm your father, Blaine. I expect you to obey my wishes."

"If you treated me like a son, I would treat you like a father."

"You should have told me that you were in a relationship with Kurt." His father seemed oddly hurt. Blaine didn't know what to make of it.

"You knew I was gay, Dad!"

"And you kept it from me anyway."

"Because I knew you'd react like this! I am not the one in the wrong here!"

"Come home, Blaine. Please."

Blaine refused to listen. "Goodbye, Dad."

"Goodbye, son."

His father walked away, and Blaine was left feeling empty. "Why doesn't he understand?" he whispered.

Kurt put an arm around his shoulders. "Maybe he will, someday."

The others arrived soon after, and Katie quickly filled them in on what had happened.

"So I told them they could stay, and Mom and Dad agreed once I explained it to them. Dad wasn't particularly happy about it at first, though. He thought I was just bringing home two random boys."

That explained the raised voices Kurt had heard the night before.

"I can't believe I wasn't there!" Anna looked very angry. "How could he do that to you?"

"I don't know," Kurt sighed. "I've heard worse."

"That sucks!"

Kurt almost laughed at her accurate description. It did indeed, suck.

Anna brightened. "But you'll be staying with us now! That's so awesome! You guys are so cool!"

"Thanks," Blaine said.

"There's another bonfire tonight, by the way," Katie told them. "If you guys want to go?"

"Yes!" Kurt said. It would be a great way to take their minds off the previous hellish night.

They got to the bonfire around nine thirty and helped set up the fire. Blaine tried to start it with a lighter and burned his finger.

"Aww, poor baby," Kurt said. "Want me to kiss it better?"

Blaine nodded, his bottom lip sticking out. Kurt obliged.

"You're so sweet," Ellie told them.

"We try," Blaine said.

Kurt showed him how to use the lighter properly, and they got the fire started without too much trouble.

The sun set and the stars began to come out. The seats around the fire filled up, and the night was filled with talk and laughter. Katie had found Toby again, and Anna was sitting with the blond boy who'd been interested in her the other night.

"What are you thinking about?" Kurt asked him.

"It seems like everyone's pretty happy. It's so different from last night."

Kurt caressed his hand comfortingly.

"I wish I could turn back time or something. I wish he'd found out a different way. Maybe if I'd just told him, he wouldn't have reacted that way." Blaine found that he was angry with himself, as well as his father. He should have at least tried harder to make him understand.

"We'll just have to work it out for ourselves. There's no point in thinking about what might have happened," Kurt told him. "Come on, we're supposed to be having fun. Don't think about that."

Kurt ran his hand up Blaine's thigh, and Blaine shivered. He was effectively distracted.

He stood up and took Kurt's hand. Kurt looked up at him in surprise, and Blaine tugged on his hand. Kurt followed him to a spot further down the beach.

Blaine sat down, and pulled Kurt down with him.

"What's up?" Kurt asked.

"I just wanted… to be alone with you."

"Oh, really?" Kurt raised an eyebrow in that adorably snarky way he had.

"Mm hmm." Blaine leaned forward and kissed him. "I feel awkward doing that in front of other people."

"Well, that shouldn't be a problem right now." Kurt gave him a deeper kiss, and Blaine whimpered a little.

Kurt smiled at him, then leaned back on to the sand so that he could look at the sky. "There are so many stars out tonight."

The stars were reflected in Kurt's eyes, and he looked incredible. "You're beautiful," Blaine said softly.

"You're amazing," Kurt breathed. Blaine leaned down to kiss him, then lay down on the sand next to him.

"This is such a cliché," Kurt said.

"I know, but it's the good kind."

His hands found Kurt's and he held them in a position that should have been awkward, but wasn't. Kurt traced circles on the leg of his jeans, and Blaine shuddered in pleasure.

A shooting star passed overhead, and he could almost hear Kurt making his wish.

"What did you wish for?" he asked Kurt.

"I can't tell you. It might not come true."

Blaine turned his head to kiss his boyfriend, and decided that Kurt's wish was probably the same as his own.

Blaine had wished that they could be like this forever.


	10. Missing

A/N: I have the rest of the story planned out, but if there's anything specific you'd like to see them do (hopefully beach related), please tell me in the comments. Hope you enjoy, and as always, I do not own Glee. Or Darren Criss. Although I would very much like to.

They had spent the day at the beach with Katie and Anna. Kurt and Blaine were up in the loft after dinner. Blaine had been quiet all day, but he just said "I'm fine" when Kurt asked him what was wrong.

Finally, Kurt got tired of it. "Blaine. Come on. Tell me what's up. Maybe I can help."

"I miss them," Blaine said.

"Hmm?"

"I miss them," Blaine repeated.

"You miss your mom?" Kurt asked, sure he'd misheard.

"Yeah, I miss her." He paused. "I miss my dad too."

Kurt stared at Blaine in horror. "How can you miss him? He threw you out of the house!"

"He didn't actually throw me out."

"But he was going to…"

"He's still my dad, and I miss him."

Kurt was confused, to say the least.

"He doesn't care about you! Why should you miss him?"

Blaine flinched. "He does care. He just doesn't understand me."

Okay, admittedly that had not been the most tactful way of putting it. But from what Kurt had seen, it was a little more than Blaine's father not understanding him. He opened his mouth to disagree, but Blaine spoke first.

"Look, you've only seen him at his worst. He's not usually like that. He's not a bad person."

He thought of how his own father had reacted to the revelation of the fact that he was gay. "A good person wouldn't do that. My dad-"

"We can't all have perfect fathers!" Blaine said. "You think I don't wish my dad was like that? Of course I do. But he's what I've got. And he's not all bad. People aren't all good or all bad, Kurt. Everyone has some of both."

Kurt remembered his own hatred for Karofsky, and how it had changed into something like pity, and maybe even the beginnings of friendship.

"I know. It's just hard for me to believe, after seeing him like that."

"I know he loves me." Blaine gave a sad smile. "After those guys beat me up at the dance, he was so angry… He called everyone at the school, went to the school board, he tried everything he could to get them expelled. It didn't work. It was my word against theirs, and the school wasn't prepared to let the best players on the football team go, just because some kid had been half-murdered."

Kurt felt a stab of pain for the sad, lonely boy staring out of Blaine's eyes. He reached out and put a comforting arm around Blaine.

Blaine continued to speak. "So I know he cared. But he didn't want me to run away, even though they were still there. He wanted me to be strong."

Now Kurt understood the self-loathing in Blaine's voice when he talked about leaving his old school. It didn't really help to convince him that Blaine's dad was a decent father.

"It was my mom who said I should transfer to Dalton. She didn't want to see me hurt anymore. He was so disappointed." Blaine looked ashamed, and Kurt felt even angrier at Blaine's dad. What right did he have to put Blaine in danger?

"You did the right thing," he said. "If you'd been attacked again… you could have died, Blaine." Kurt was almost sick at the thought of Blaine not existing. "You'd be dead, and we'd never have met. You can't keep torturing yourself over transferring to Dalton. Besides, you're happier now, aren't you?"

Blaine gave a half-hearted smile. "Yeah. I have you."

When they'd first met, Blaine had seemed so confident. Kurt had found a mentor in him, and had become infatuated with the boy who had so much in common with him, but didn't appear to let any of it bother him. As time went on, though, he'd found out that deep down, his boyfriend was very insecure. He put on a front, and appeared perfect - to everyone but himself. And his father, apparently. But Kurt loved him despite, and even because of, the flaws he'd uncovered.

"So you don't have to worry." He took hold of Blaine's hand, and gave him a reassuring smile. "You'll be okay."


	11. Fishing

A/N: Sorry the last chapter was so short. Hopefully this one makes up for it. ;) The story will probably be wrapping up soon, but I'm considering doing a sequel, if anyone would want to read it. Enjoy! Also, I still do not own Glee or any of the characters except for my OC's.

Things went better after Blaine told Kurt what was wrong, but there were still times when he would lapse into silence and stare off into space. Kurt could tell that he was regretting more and more his decision to leave.

"I feel like I'm running away again," he said when Kurt tried to get him to talk about it. "I should have stayed to work things out."

Kurt attempted to quell his frustration. "Blaine, like you said, you're not the one in the wrong here. It's not you who should be worrying about fixing things." He felt as though Blaine blamed himself for everything, even when it wasn't his fault.

"I guess."

Kurt let the matter rest, unable to think of a way to convince Blaine to stop stressing about it.

Blaine was becoming increasingly despondent. He kept dwelling on the fight, and going over everything he should have said and done. He prided himself on his ability to keep his true feelings hidden, but the techniques for misdirection and deflection he had developed over the years didn't work on Kurt. He was fairly good and pretending to be fine, and had often felt terrible at school, but gone the whole day without anyone asking what wrong. Unfortunately his boyfriend had too much experience with using similar techniques himself.

When he was able to tear himself away from introspection, Blaine was the happiest he had ever been. He and Kurt spent the sunny days on the beach with Katie and the others, or just the two of them. They usually swam or lounged around on the sand. He was still astonished that Katie's parents had agreed to take them in. Blaine had brought a good amount of money with him, and offered it to them in return for their hospitality. They refused, and only reluctantly agreed when he insisted on at least paying for the food he and Kurt consumed.

One particularly fine day, he and Kurt were lying on the beach, looking up at the sky. Blaine was feeling a little a bored, so he pointed out an interestingly shaped cloud.

"That one looks like a kangaroo!"

Kurt smiled at him fondly. "I'm sorry, but it is clearly a crocodile."

The cloud morphed into a shape that resembled a dragon, wings spreading out into the sky.

Blaine searched the sky, and saw one that made him laugh. "That one looks like you, Kurt!"

"Really? It looks more like Pinocchio to me."

It was true, the nose was lengthening as though the cloud had just told a lie.

"No one's ever told you that you look like Pinocchio?" he said, a wicked grin on his face.

"Hey!" Kurt gave Blaine his best bitch glare, but he wasn't really angry. It was hard to be mad at Blaine when he looked so adorable. "I resent that." Kurt managed to keep his glare in place, a look that threatened imminent death.

Blaine actually looked a little scared. "Sorry!"

Kurt relented. It was nice to know he was a better actor than Blaine, at least.

"Looking at clouds isn't very interesting..."

"Oh?" Blaine said. "What would you rather do?" He had a suggestive grin on his face.

"I could think of a few things."

Blaine pushed a strand of hair out of his eyes. He'd been wearing it mostly free of gel ever since he learned that Kurt found it irresistibly sexy. It really wasn't fair. Kurt had no way of knowing that Blaine was just as affected by his presence.

Blaine kissed him softly. Kurt deepened the kiss, and they spent a few enjoyable minutes that way, but it was really too humid to do anything more strenuous than lie on the beach.

The heat was becoming oppressive, so they decided to buy ice cream. Kurt had become somewhat addicted to the heavenly sorbet, and Blaine had tried every flavor the small shop offered. He was still partial to the chocolate with gummi worms, but the chocolate chip cookie dough was very good too.

After they paid, the two of them headed to the pier that divided the beach in half. It was mainly used by fishermen, but there were plenty of tourists there too. Kurt stared in morbid fascination as one of the men caught and gutted a fish. He'd always thought the activity was boring and somewhat cruel, but he liked the taste of fish too much to stop eating it.

He remembered a story Katie had told him of coming to this pier after dark when she was younger, for a past family reunion. She said she had seen someone catch a shark. Apparently it was easier to catch sharks at night, or so the man had told her. Kurt wasn't sure if he believed her, but she had seemed totally serious.

"What are you doing?" Blaine was looking a little concerned.

He shrugged. "Considering the ethics of fishing."

"Interesting. Can we go somewhere else? The smell is sort of putting me off my ice cream."

They walked back down the pier, and were shocked to come face to face with Blaine's mother.

Blaine had talked to her on the phone at least once a day since he left the house, but he hadn't actually seen her since that night.

"Mom!"

She hugged him. "Oh Blaine. I've missed you so much." She surveyed him sadly. "I wish you would tell me where you're staying."

She asked every time he called, but he hadn't told her. He wasn't completely sure why, except that he didn't quite trust her not to tell his father. It was true that she had stood up for them, but it must be hard to be torn between her son and her husband.

"We're staying with friends, remember?"

"But I can't be sure you're safe when I don't know where you are."

Her concern brought back every feeling of guilt that had plagued him after he met his father on the beach.

Kurt seemed to know how he was feeling, as he usually did, and took his hand to comfort him.

"We miss you, Blaine. Your father as well as me. He's regretted what happened, what he said, ever since you left. Please come back."

She searched his face, trying to discern his reaction.

Blaine looked away from her pleading eyes uncomfortably. She knew exactly how to make him feel guilty, and he was sure she would try to manipulate him if it would get him to come home. He wasn't sure what to say. He couldn't make his decision yet. He avoided Kurt's gaze too, and softly said, "I'll think about it."


	12. We Need to Talk

A/N: This is the last chapter for Summertime, although I will be posting an epilogue and maybe starting a sequel fairly soon. I hope you've enjoyed this story. It's the first fanfic I've written, and I didn't expect anyone to even read it, let alone the positive response that I got. So thank you to everyone who has read it, and especially to the people who reviewed. You guys have helped me so much. Thank you! And as always, I do not own Glee, although I am rather partial to the characters. 

Kurt looked at Blaine in horror. Was he seriously considering this? After everything that had happened?

"Blaine, please," his mother said.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I can't decide yet."

"But-"

"I just can't."

Blaine hugged his mother and told her he'd give her an answer soon, then left for Anna and Katie's house. Kurt followed in a state of shock. The boys didn't notice how Blaine's mother's eyes followed them all the way back to the house.

They walked inside, and Katie greeted them cheerfully. "Do you guys want to play Mario Kart?"

"Not right now," Kurt said tersely.

"Kurt-" Blaine gave him a look. How could he be so rude?"

"I'm sorry," Kurt said. "I need to talk to Blaine just now."

Blaine looked apprehensive. "Can't it wait?"

"I don't think so."

Katie looked between the two of them worriedly. "Are you guys okay? Is something wrong?"

"Everything's fine. I just need to discuss something with Blaine."

Blaine sighed. "Fine."

They went upstairs to the loft.

"What did you want to talk about?" Blaine asked innocently.

"You know perfectly well."

"Okay. You're right. I do know. But can't we wait a little to talk about it? I don't know what to say right now."

"I just want to know what's going through your head." Okay, maybe that came out a little harsher than he intended. "I mean, I need to know what you're thinking." Kurt growled in frustration. His words, normally so composed, weren't coming out right. Blaine waited patiently for Kurt to sort out what he wanted to say. "Sorry. Can you please tell me why you're considering going back? I feel like I'm missing something here."

Blaine thought for a little while, trying to organize the thoughts he'd been having over the past few days.

"I guess… there are a few reasons. For one thing, I miss both of my parents. I've never had a fight this big with my dad. And I really want to work it out. I can't stand fighting with anyone, especially my parents. But for another… Kurt, have you thought about how we're going to get home?"

Kurt realized that he hadn't really thought about it all. He'd worried about what they were going to do, but he hadn't come up with any solutions. "I guess not."

"Don't you see? Aside from my problems, we do have to get home. And making up with my dad is really the only way I can see of doing that."

"I understand. But I still don't think we can go back if we're not going to feel safe there."

"And that's why I didn't say yes right away."

"If everything else fails, we can always call my dad. I'd hoped to avoid worrying him, but I'll tell him if I have to. He'll be mad that I didn't tell him what happened sooner, but he'll help us anyway."

"You're right. I hadn't thought of that."

"So what do you want to do?"

"I'll think I'll wait a couple of days to make a decision. See if anything else happens to change my mind either way."

"That makes sense." They smiled at each other, then went back downstairs to play Mario Kart. 

Someone was knocking on the front door. Blaine opened his eyes blearily, and checked the time on his phone. Eight? That was acceptable for a school day when you had no other choice, but not for summer vacation, unless there was something really important you had to do.

The knocking grew more insistent. Blaine wondered why no one had answered the door. He looked over at Kurt, who was still fast asleep. They had stayed up late the night before, playing Truth or Dare with Anna and the others.

It seemed that the door still had not been answered. Blaine got up and went downstairs. He opened the door, thinking that it was probably Toby, needing to see Katie urgently for some reason.

Standing on the porch was his father. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you."

Blaine considered him warily. "What about?"

"I want you to come home."

Blaine moved to close the door, but his father caught it. "Please hear me out."

Blaine folded his arms. "What do you want to say?"

"Can we sit down?" His father looked towards the chairs on the porch.

"I think you can say whatever you want to say right here."

"I want to apologize," his father said grudgingly.

That got Blaine's attention. In all the years he'd known his father, he had never once received an apology for anything his father had said or done. He stepped out onto the porch and sat down at one of the chairs, then looked at his father expectantly.

"You should know Blaine… that it's hard for me to accept that you're gay. I've been trying to deny it for far too long, hoping it was just a phase you would grow out of."

Blaine almost rolled his eyes. He knew that far too well.

"Not because I don't care about you. I do. But when I had a son, I imagined that he'd grow up strong and tall, become a successful lawyer, and one day get married to a nice girl who would be an asset to the family."

He definitely didn't fit that profile. He was good at sports, but he was short, not remotely interested in law, and had no plans to marry a girl. He was quite happy with Kurt, thank you very much. He looked down at his hands.

"I can't change who I am."

"And you shouldn't. Not for me, not for anyone. I'm proud of you."

Blaine looked up in surprise.

"You stood up to me, when it would have been far easier just to accept what I said and go on as we always have." His father took a deep breath. It was obvious that it was hard for him to admit these things. "I'm sorry for what I said, and for not treating you the way a father should treat his son."

"Thank you."

His father held up a finger. "That said, you are not completely innocent here."

He should have known this was coming.

"You never told me that Kurt was your… boyfriend. You let me believe that he was just a friend, and that there was nothing going on between you."

His dad had a point. "I know. I should have told you. And I'm sorry for that. But I had a good reason not to."

"Oh?" His father raised an eyebrow.

"I have a question for you."

"Yes...?"

"What did you think of Kurt before you knew that we were together?"

"I thought that he was a polite young man who seemed like a good friend to you."

"Exactly. I wanted you to get to know him without judging him for something he can't control, before I told you that he was gay."

His father remained silent.

"I love him, Dad. And I want you to at least accept that, even if you don't understand our relationship."

He waited while his father processed this.

"I'll try."

Blaine smiled. Maybe things would turn out okay after all.


	13. Epilogue: Summertime

The day after Kurt arrived back, Burt wanted to know how the trip had been. He probably would have asked earlier, but the plane had gotten in very late at night. "How was the trip, kiddo? You didn't bother to call me very often." Burt looked reproachful.

"I did call you!"

"Once."

"At least three times."

"Which is still not nearly as much as I'd like to have heard from you. I missed you, Kurt. The house is boring without you."

"Really? I'd have thought Finn would provide plenty of entertainment."

"He spends most of his time at his girlfriend's house. What's her name? Rachel? I can't keep track."

Kurt smirked. "It is Rachel. For the moment, at least."

"You're changing the subject, Kurt. What happened while you were at the beach?"

Kurt thought for a moment. He'd have to give his dad the highly edited version. If he told Burt everything that happened, he'd probably be forbidden from going to Blaine's house ever again.

"Um… well. We went swimming, we sat around on the beach, we toasted marshmallows… Oh. And I'm pretty sure the ice cream there is the best on the planet. You'd have loved it, Dad." He was pretty sure he would be going into withdrawal from the lack of that ice cream in the next few days, actually.

"A recommendation for _ice cream_? From _Kurt_? I might have to try this."

Kurt rolled his eyes. Burt often thought he was funnier than he really was.

"Anything exciting happen?"

"Not really. We met some cool people, though."

"Yeah?

"They were from New Zealand."

"Isn't that in Australia?"

"That's what I said," Kurt laughed. There were times when he and his dad were remarkably similar. "She got pretty annoyed at me, though."

"She?"

"Katie. She came up and introduced herself to us, and convinced us to come sit with her and her friends. Well, actually, they were her family… but they seemed pretty close. We spent a lot of time with them."

"They sound nice."

"I don't think her motives were as innocent as she pretended though," Kurt said, remembering her interest in his boyfriend.

"What do you mean?"

"She was into Blaine…"

"He didn't have another identity crisis, did he? Because I like that kid, but you don't need to go through that again." Burt suddenly looked a little threatening.

"No, it was fine. She backed off once she found out we were together. They were all really nice to us." Extremely nice, in fact. He owed Katie and Anna more than he could ever tell his dad. He hoped they would stay in contact, even though the sisters would be going home soon.

Burt relaxed. "Sounds like you had a good time."

"Definitely."

They had been back in Ohio for a couple of weeks now. Blaine had spent most of the time at Kurt's house, but they had stayed over at his house a few times too. His father really did seem to be trying to accept them, but he still looked extremely uncomfortable if they kissed in front of him. They decided not to test his patience too much.

Blaine arrived at Kurt's house, lugging a keyboard with some difficulty. Kurt let him in, then picked up the other end.

"Wait, you have a keyboard too? How many instruments do you _play_, Blaine?"

"Um… a few?"

Kurt shook his head, half in amazement, and half in exasperation. Blaine was ridiculously talented. He found that he was quite jealous, occasionally. At least his boyfriend now used his musical powers for good instead of evil. (Kurt still hadn't forgotten the Gap Attack incident.)

"Why did you bring a keyboard over here?"

"I wanted to show you something I've been working on."

Kurt helped Blaine carry the keyboard upstairs to his room. Blaine set it up, then sat nervously on the stool Kurt had put next to it.

"So? Let's hear it."

"It's not actually mine," Blaine explained. "I sort of… messed with a few songs."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll just show you."

Blaine began to play. It sounded like Fur Elise, which reminded Kurt of his mother. When he was six, she had given him a music box that played that song, and he listened to it whenever he really missed her. Blaine had seemed oddly fascinated with it last time he visited Kurt's room, turning the handle over and over. The song made him sad, but in a good way.

The notes fell strangely on Kurt's ears, slightly different from his music box, a bit softer, maybe. Until Blaine started singing, and Kurt understood what Blaine meant by "messing with" a few songs. The phrase didn't really do the beautiful song justice.

_Summertime,  
>And the livin' is easy<br>Fish are jumpin'  
>And the cotton is high<em>

_Your daddy's rich_  
><em>And your mamma's good lookin'<em>  
><em>So hush little baby<em>  
><em>Don't you cry, cry…<em>

It was a lovely song, played in a minor key, but somehow a little hopeful, too. Blaine had arranged this? He admired Blaine's talent even more now. Kurt would never have thought to put those two songs in the same piece.

_One of these mornings  
>You're gonna rise up singing<br>Then you'll spread your wings  
>And you'll take to the sky<em>

_But until that morning_  
><em>Ain't nothing can harm you<em>  
><em>With daddy and mommy standing by, standing by…<em>

_Ain't no sunshine when he's gone  
>It's not warm when he's away<br>Ain't no sunshine when he's gone  
>He's always gone too long anytime he goes away<em>

And now he was effectively astonished. If this was Blaine "messing with" a few songs, what would happen when he worked on something seriously? He'd have to ask if Blaine had written anything else.

_Wonder this time where he's gone_  
><em>Wonder where he's gonna stay<em>  
><em>Ain't no sunshine when he's gone<em>  
><em>This house just ain't no home, <em>

_Anytime he goes away…_

_He goes away_

_Summertime,  
>And the livin' is easy<br>Fish are jumpin'  
>And the cotton, the cotton is high<em>

Kurt took a second away from being mesmerized to notice Blaine's falsetto was unbelievably sexy.

_Oh, your daddy's rich  
>And your mamma's so damn good lookin'<br>So hush little baby  
>Don't you cry…<em>

_Don't you cry._

Author's Note: So. There it is. The epilogue. Summertime is officially finished. (At least, until I decide that I feel like writing a missing scene or something.) I hope you guys liked it. I'll probably start the sequel soon, but I most likely won't be able to update as much because I'm pretty busy with school at the moment.

The song is Fur Elise+Summertime+Ain't No Sunshine. The arrangement is credited to Darren Criss, Summertime Lyrics are by George Gershwin, and Ain't No Sunshine is by Bill Withers. Fur Elise was composed by Beethoven. That arrangement is, as some of you may have guessed, the inspiration for the title of this fic, and also one of my favourite songs. If you want to listen to it, which I definitely recommend, there is a link here: http :/ /www. youtube. com/wa tch?v= qDFvyx PvwgM

The beach that Blaine and Kurt went to is called Sunset Beach, which I have visited several times, and it is absolutely beautiful. If anyone wants to know what it looks like, there are links to a few pictures in my profile.

Thank you so much for reading!_  
><em>


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